Speaking to the press at a Republican confab in Mackinac Island, Michigan, the freshman senator from Kentucky conceded that he doubts the House resolution passed Friday, which would defund the Affordable Care Act, could emerge from a Senate debate unscathed and unamended. One of the most vocal opponents of Obamacare, Paul does hold out hope that threatening to not pay for the legislative program could result in a finished product that's "less bad."

"In the end the sausage factory in Washington will make the sausage," Paul told the Detroit News.

Paul, whose potential as presidential contender in 2016 has been a subject of much speculation, admitted that absent a sudden and total alignment behind an approach to tackling the health care law, his caucus' "disunity" means Republicans will most likely fall short of canceling, or even delaying, the law from going into effect.

"Leverage doesn't work unless people believe you'll actually do something," Paul said. "The fact that Democrats don't believe we'll do anything, in the end they'll get what they want and a bill will be cobbled together."

soundoff(273 Responses)

Norma Vessels

Yes, the Affordable Care Act will stay in place, as it should. If this leaves a bad taste in some of your mouths, look at it this way ... Obama Care is no more than an extension of Medicare, except now it will help everyone, instead of only people 65 and older. :-)

September 22, 2013 09:12 am at 9:12 am |

truth is

so 10 years from now when it turns out this healthcare law actually helped more people than it hurt and businesses weren't nearly as affected as they cried about, are people like Rand Paul going to say that they liked the bill all the time or will they say they were wrong 100% and had no idea what they were talking about?

Never seen such a group of people in Washington in my life who hate something so much before it even comes into law 100%...how many of these people complaining about do you think actually read the entire bill and understand it? These are the same people who couldn't be bothered reading the Patriot Act, there is NO WAY they read this.

September 22, 2013 09:20 am at 9:20 am |

MaryAngeline

Can't wait for the 2016 GOP debates! Rand will give a ""Rick Perry" type performance. They both think alike, which is seldom..

September 22, 2013 09:33 am at 9:33 am |

RanddoPunk

Obama could stick the holy Bible in front of Rand Paul and tell him it is the Bible. Rand could then go and read every single page to see that it reads exactly like the one does at his home and at the end Rand would loudly proclaim that Obama handed him a duplicate copy full of errors and deceitful passages. It is just how he does things.. it gets him the attention he apparently missed out on being raised by Ron.

September 22, 2013 09:34 am at 9:34 am |

demon

Rand Paul is a turd. He and his disassociated split republican party are merely people with an ego security complex who think deserve more than the average american. since they can't convince poor whites ( who should vote democrat due to income reason) they attack in other ways like church and moral obligations that have nothing to do with the government of the great old U.S.A. it's ok purposes that are wrong eventually split and fall apart in this country and that's what the republicans are doing now. Stand in front of progress and it will eventually run you over...P.S. vote democrat

September 22, 2013 09:53 am at 9:53 am |

Compromise and Negotiation

Rand Paul represents the CommonSense Majority: ObamaCare/ACA is fatally flawed and needs to be repaired before it is fully implemented. Like any "law of the land", it can be modified, amended, or repealed.

The size and scope of ObaamaCare/ACA mandates that BOTH political parties have input. The current law represents only liberal Democrat interests, not the majority of Americas.

September 22, 2013 09:53 am at 9:53 am |

GI Joe

But all those folks in red states that get "free" healthcare at the ER .can't afford $40 or $50 a month each. It will mean 2 or 3 fewer bottles of booze less, or a carton of cigs less, or 3 or 4 6-packs of beer less. Wouldn't want them to do without their necessities would we?

And the kids? Who needs vaccinations? Those diseases only kill a few thousand

September 22, 2013 09:53 am at 9:53 am |

Insight

Rand Paul is now stabbing Ted Cruz and joining Peter King.

September 22, 2013 09:54 am at 9:54 am |

Jack

Well, Mr. Rand, they a blind squirrel can a find occasionally. You have said something semi-intelligent!

Come on people. go read history about Republican doing as and med and Medicare then you will know how wrong been for this nation

September 22, 2013 09:56 am at 9:56 am |

ST

Folks, do these people have any working brain? They have been voting more than 40 times on the same thing and failed. How can it be this time come out differently? Do these people really deserve to represent anyone? It is the big shame and shame to those who voted them in to represent them. Excuse me by using this term: "all of them have coconut heads full of water only".

September 22, 2013 09:59 am at 9:59 am |

Pilgrim

It's a wonder to think we can pay for our expenditures on "I hope so", Francisco. Unfortunately the Chinese will be calling in our debt that we pay 40% of obamascare from.

September 22, 2013 10:02 am at 10:02 am |

OnTheRoad

OK, the DEMs hold the Senate and Obama holds the White House, so exactly how did the GOP feel that they would be able to get rid of ObamaCare? There is a difference between being 'Slow' and being 'Stupid' and I would not call the GOP 'Slow'!

September 22, 2013 10:07 am at 10:07 am |

Edward Beazley

We do not let people die in the streets in America. You call 911 and we come and take you to the hospital. So we already have national health insurance. What we are really arguing about is who pays for it. This question exposes the hypocrisy of the Republican Party. Republicans say they are for free market capitalism where goods compete on price and quality. The price of producing a good includes the healthcare and the retirement costs of the workers who produced the good. Otherwise, when you buy a good, you really have not paid it. Employees’ healthcare and retirement costs do not magically disappear because their employer does not provide health insurance or retirement. 30% of our health insurance bills are the cost of paying for the uninsured. Go to Costco where they have health insurance and pay your bill you’re done. Go to Wal-Mart and pay your bill. When you get home you’ve got another bill from Wal-Mart waiting for you hidden on your health insurance premium. Since a third of your health insurance premium is to pay the cost of the uninsured it’s not small bill. If both Costco and Wal-Mart are selling the same good at the same price—which is really cheaper?

September 22, 2013 10:09 am at 10:09 am |

bcrunner

I don't understand what they are expecting to achieve by going this route. Good luck with holding on to the House if they decide to shut down the government. They complain about people not working and getting unemployment? We pay them $175K a year for what? To work only 9 days this month, to take 6 weeks vacation and work maybe a total of half the year? and they call us lazy? Just in the last 2 weeks I worked longer than they worked all summer...

September 22, 2013 10:15 am at 10:15 am |

dave

It's much ado, alot of fuss, when, still, the republicans have no alternative plan for health care insurance. The thing I wonder about is what happens to those who choose to opt out of health care reform. Do hospitals still have to treat them? Is the burden still on the hospitals, and the taxpayers? Is it still a pretty good deal for those who wish to chance it? I know that I had pretty good luck, was never treated for anything, just an industrial accident, which my employer covered. Even now, at 66, all I do is take a few pills. Someday the luck will change, but hopefull not soon. The other thing I wonder about is where are they going to get all the health care workers. Already they are complaining of shortages of nurses, maybe even doctors. The demographics show it will get much worse. With all the millions becoming newly insured, it's likely to put a huge strain on the industry. My daughter has a degree in health care administration, but has been unemployed for nearly a year. She has 10 years experience in that profession, 5 years of college, huge debt, and no job.

September 22, 2013 10:16 am at 10:16 am |

JamVee

I totally agree with Rand Paul on this issue.

The Conservative's Repeal effort is a huge waste of time and money. Our time would be better spent attempting to fix some of Obama-Care's MANY problems.

September 22, 2013 10:17 am at 10:17 am |

JH

killing Obamacare is easy, just let it go into effect and when people feel the crushing financial burden it places on them, then move to repeal it.

September 22, 2013 10:20 am at 10:20 am |

Lexagon

It's not enough that the current crop of dolts crashed what was left of the Republican party, now they're insisting on grinding it into the ground until there's nothing left. They might as well just concede 2016 now and go on an extended vacation.

September 22, 2013 10:22 am at 10:22 am |

ldavis

Already jobs are being posted for 27-29 hours per week in our area. Why so they people that need health care can try and pay for there own. Problem is that they need the extra 10 hours to try and even be in the ballpark. They can't live on the 29 hours per week. Right now they work 40 hours with no benefits...and now will go to 29 hours and have to try and provide for a family and THEN BUY healthcare and if not get a TAX for not having it.

September 22, 2013 10:24 am at 10:24 am |

Seattle Sue

Rand Paul is not good for our country. Both he and his father are nuts. Of course that is just my opinion.

September 22, 2013 10:25 am at 10:25 am |

carlos

FIre the ENTIRE government!

September 22, 2013 10:27 am at 10:27 am |

Pat

The GOP know and knew they cannot defund Obamacare, the funds come out of a different budget that are not connected to the budget deficit and even if the government closes, Obamacare will proceed. I'm looking forward for Obamacare. The GOP don't seem to care about all the money spent on attack ads and false biased polls saying American people don't want it. If any American doesn't want health care, they are playing Russian Roulette. The most important thing is that we can change parts that don't work and make them better.

September 22, 2013 10:32 am at 10:32 am |

sickofthelies

Rand is such a good little puppet. On his mission to take the liberty movement and turn them into compliant little drones, Rand is giving it all he's got. I think if Obama were arrested for treason, as he should be, we could get rid of Obamacare. And if Bush were arrested for war crimes, as he should be, we could roll back the Patriot Act, too. But Rand would have to bring up the treason and the war crimes, and that would lose him voters in his 2016 WH run.